Scripture: Numbers 9:15–23; Deuteronomy 5:22–32
My mouth was opened to speak of silent worship, and express my belief that those who worship the Father in spirit and in truth, often find these meetings to be the most strengthening and encouraging of any other; for the minister of the sanctuary and true tabernacle, who is the Lord Jesus Christ, knows all our wants, and is acquainted with our several situations, and where there is a looking unto Him in the way of his judgments, bearing the baptism of the Holy Ghost and fire, He will cleanse the temple of the heart, and come in and sup with us, and we with Him. And He will at times and seasons break in amongst those thus waiting upon Him, with this inviting language—“Children come and dine”—that there will be left no doubt who it is, knowing that it is the Lord himself, thus inviting and feeding his disciples with the food He hath prepared for them, comforting and strengthening their hearts together, with his holy, life-giving power and presence. —Ann Branson
Questions: The Israelites created special places to encounter God. Why do you think they did this? Do people today still feel this same need? For Friends, the idea of God being present in meetings for worship is not unusual, but most of us do not fear for our lives when we think about encountering God. What do you think we lose and gain from understanding God as approachable and ever-present? In what ways do you notice yourself and your faith community delegating the work of listening to God to one or a few people, and in what ways do you share that responsibility?
An outside observer might have watched the journey of the children of Israel as they followed God out of Egypt and wandered in the wilderness for forty years, and assumed they were lost. But, they were exactly where they were supposed to be: following the direction of the Lord through the cloud by day and pillar of fire by night. In Numbers, the cloud and fire appeared over the tabernacle after Moses consecrated it, and it represented the presence of God in their midst, instructing them when to camp and when to move (Numbers 7:89; 9:15–23). Perhaps they thought their journey was simply deliverance from Egypt to the Promised Land of milk and honey. While God certainly did have a plan to release them from the Egyptians, God also had in mind their deliverance from themselves. They were called to a journey of transformation, not merely a different place to live.
Like the Israelites, I suspect many of us may have felt at one time or another as if our spiritual journeys look like we are wandering and lost. When feeling that way, our first inclination may be to doubt and grasp for an easy fix, or we may cling to ideas or people who offered security in the past.
We might also notice people around us experiencing a wilderness portion of their spiritual journey. In these moments, we have an opportunity to seek and offer sacred hospitality, as we would to one happening upon our encampment as we both traveled the wilderness.
Part of my work as a spiritual director includes what I call “soul accompaniment”—offering hospitality to those wandering the spiritual wilderness. Since we no longer have God’s visible presence with us in a cloud or pillar of fire, it can help to work together to discern the wilderness path God is guiding us on—a path filled with God’s presence, characterized by disruption of our routines, and expansion of our previous understandings. I think of soul accompaniment as a gift of intense listening, vulnerable speaking, and deep questions. Through this act of hospitality, I partake of God’s presence together with another person who is seeking after God, and in so doing, we both more fully offer our transformed presence for the sake of the world. We partake of God’s presence and are nourished as we pray, worship, and wait in silence. Christian spiritual transformation is a journey that invites us to follow and recognize God’s presence in the reality of living in our present moment, and often leads us into unexpected places.
–Lynn Holt in “Friendly Perspective” from Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy: Following God Together